Mixology Monday: Broaden Your Horizons

by Matt Robold on January 20, 2009

I’m skating in behind the deadline and probably not in the round-up, but I will NOT miss Mixology Monday this month. I had originally written up what we’ll all just assume was my greatest work ever on this site, only to have my computer crash and Windows Live Writer refuse to open my draft afterward. Such is life…and now the world will never see my magnum opus. Ehem.

This month’s topic of mixological conversation, hosted by the mysterious blogger known only as “The Scribe” over at A Mixed Dram, is centered around expanding the participants’ horizons. Specifically:

Try a new base spirit. Never mixed with Tequila? Give it a try. If you’ve never made a beer cocktail or a wine cocktail, why not give it a shot? What about something really exotic? How about aquardiente from the Caribbean or arrack from the Middle East? (Okay, so that’s basically rum and anisette, but you get the drift.)

As often happens with TDN’s, I eventually found myself being prodded by Rick from KaiserPenguin to mix two ingredients that – at first glance – have no business sharing the same drinking vessel. Being a person unable to back down from a challenge, I inevitably end up in my kitchen with bottles strewn about the counter tops, as I pour and shake and stir and swear and sip my way to something I can submit to the chat room. This recent escapade saw Rick suggesting I mix chartreuse and Castries Peanut Rum cream.

My first reaction was utter horror. I explained to Rick that I hadn’t had enough to drink to think that was a good idea by any stretch of the imagination…and then promptly ran to the kitchen with an idea.

The name of the drink may seem a bit odd as there is no chocolate or cocoa in the list of ingredients, but it is apt. The blend of the Castries, the herbal notes of the chartreuse, and the depth of the blackstrap rum all come together to create a chocolatey drink that is a lot of fun to sip.